Squirrels are these little ratlike animal that are known for being cute and small. They are fast, tiny and, even if you didn’t know, dangerous. Yes, they can be dangerous, if you hate having someone biting. Squirrels also have bushy tails filled with fur, and their colors may depend on the area they lived in. Most common squirrels are brown or gray, but there are black squirrels too.

They generally are small, from 7 to 10 cm, but they can be bigger depending of the type of squirrel. Also, their general weight depends on the squirrels type and diet, but normally is from 10g or more.

Where can you find a squirrel?

Well, squirrels live in many types of habitats. Tropical, forests bathed with rain, and even semiarid places. Squirrels can be found anywhere from Miami to Portland and beyond. Two places where it would be unlikely to find squirrels are in completely arid places like deserts and places filled with cold.

Mating and behavior

They usually mate one or two times a year, and depending on the specie of the squirrel, they may drop several younglings. The females look after their kids, and then stop giving after six to ten weeks of being born. They become sexually capable after their first year.

As I already said, squirrels run by types, there are those who are constantly in the ground, which are more sociable than those who are constantly moving around trees. The first type of squirrels may live in colonies and you may find them in places filled with people. Another thing to add is that both of them are diurnal and crepuscular, which means that they do everything at the morning or at sunset. Another type of squirrels known as flying squirrels, are nocturnal.

Their diet

One of the reasons why people shouldn’t feed squirrels is that their diet can be quite complicated. First of all, they can’t handle cellulose, which is the reason why they tend to eat food with proteins, carbohydrates and fats.

Their diet consists usually in fruits, seeds, nuts, green vegetation and fungi.

Some squirrels, when suffering of extreme hunger, tend to eat meat.

It may differ from the type of squirrel, but they can also eat eggs, insects, young snakes and even small birds. There are those who have changed their diet into an insect eating diet.

They can be aggressive without even wanting to.

An interesting fact to add about squirrels is that they cannot— like dogs can—control their bites. If they sense the need to bite something they won’t hesitate and give it a second thought. They will just bite, and they will do it with all their strength. That’s why they can’t be domesticated, since they can be dangerous to kids and babies. Also, they have big claws which are needed to get up trees and move around. They can tear your skin and make you bleed if you are not careful enough.

Squirrel’s enemies.

Squirrels, as many other animals, have predators. There are several predators for the squirrels, but some of them eat squirrels depending on their species. While we are at it, I will write down some of the predators that eat squirrels without worrying of its type.

Squirrels’ can be kept by humans as pets. When you decide to keep a squirrel, you should keep in mind the fact that it’s a job that requires commitment and a lot of work. You will have to do as much work as you would do to take care of any other pet. Keeping a squirrel as pet is a huge job. Don’t forget that you are dealing with a wild animal, and captivity could be quite a shock for such a creature. But if you are convinced that you must keep one and care for it, here are tips that will help take good care of a squirrel;

1. Make a stable cage

When you want to keep a squirrel, the first thing that you need to do is ensure that you provide a decent place for him to live. You should build a cage that strong enough and that he can live in comfortably. The squirrel will explore every inch of the space that you put him in. That is why you have to ensure that there are no hazards in his living space. These animals are incredible athletes. They run, jump and climb whenever the get the chance. They also love to chew. The will try to chew anything they can get their hands on. You should not let the squirrel roam around your house. This is because these animals can chew electrical cables and damage other precious items that you have in your home. Make sure that the cage is big enough for him to move around.

2. Create a feeding program

To keep a squirrel healthy, strong and active, you have to ensure that he is well fed. You can find very man types of rodent blocks in your local store that are suitable for squirrels. You should also give him fruits and fresh vegetable on a regular basis. You should make sure that your squirrel is properly fed at all times. Squirrels’ front teeth grow continuously. You have to provide them with things that they can chew on to worn out the front teeth. This includes things such as sticks, branches and bones. You also have to make sure that a squirrel is well hydrated by providing plenty of water every day.

3. Avoid having too much physical contact with the squirrel

You should not have too much physical contact with your squirrel. Although it is very important to ensure that your squirrel receives plenty of attention, this is something that you will be able to do without having too much physical contact. you should give him supervised time outside the cage on a regular basis. The reason why you should avoid too much physical contact is because a squirrel can hurt you and hurt other people around you. They are not aggressive animals. However, they have very sharp objects on them. A squirrel can bite you or scratch you using his claws.

4. Take the squirrel to the vet for regular medical check ups

You must ensure that you take your squirrel to the vet on regular basis. This will help you ensure that he remains healthy at all times. You should also take him to the vet any time you notice that he is not behaving as usual. Inactivity is one of the things that indicate that a squirrel is not doing well.

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No conversation regarding squirrels in pop culture could leave out the delights of Sandy Cheeks, Spongebob Squarepants’ super highly intelligent undersea inventor friend. Nor could we overlook the ever-popular sidekick of Bullwinkle from Frostbite Falls, Rocky J. Squirrel, the intelligent and very forgiving friend. Looking at those ever popular squirrels we also find the crazed wild squirrels that Alvin and his brothers dress up in Road Chip, in an attempt to convince their ‘babysitter’ that the chipmunks are still at home.

Nature’s Little Furry Friends:

Squirrels are often thought of as merely the ‘nuts’ of the wildlife kingdom, just as using the phrase ‘they are a squirrel’ will have on people. But there happens to be a list of infamous squirrels that are far from simple nuts. Today’s squirrel world consists of the spectacular internet sensation, Twiggy, the water-skiing squirrel definitely are not your average backyard nut job.

Gathering their nuts for the winter is just part of what we think when we look at the high-wire acts that fill the trees and the air above our lawns all summer. Yet, those little grey squirrels are far from the world of one particular member of the squirrel world.

Anyone who has a fascination with this little furry cutie will have heard about or seen a photo of the most photographed squirrel of the planet. Sugar Bush, is the little squirrel that fits that definition and it

can only be described the phenomena like no other. While Twiggy is a skiing master, Sugar Bush remains a master of disguise. This International Modeling wonder has been photographed in costume

as everyone from the Phantom of the Opera (tiny little mask included), in the full military glory of the infamous dictator Fidel Castro while he was hospitalized, and even as a full Oval Office inhabitant of George W. Bush.

Cinematic World of Furry Friends:

So no mention of the pop culture world today could leave out that rather photogenic furry Sugar Bush. Hollywood has continued to add the squirrel to movies as a regular comic relief to the other larger animals. Just as we laughed at the Irish brogue with McSquizzy as he served his purpose to add laughter to any scene with him in Open Season, other squirrels of today’s cinema make us laugh as they scurry about.

No matter if it is Surly from The Nut Job or Scrat, that familiar and unfortunate squirrel of Ice Age,

all work to delight audiences of all ages with their lively antics and mishaps. Every time we see Scrat everyone wonders will he save his nut this time?

Our Fascination With This World of The Furry:

Squirrels flying from tree to tree or scurrying up a light pole, are a joy that backyard visitors enjoy every day. But even if the real world only has the squirrel likes of the illustrious and rare white squirrel, we are all fascinated with this wily little guy. That glimpse of a flash of white scurrying through the trees is as exciting as seeing anything else you could possibly imagine.

Squirrels remain to be one of the popular iconic figures of the trees or can merely be the crazy lady that lives down the road, whichever it is squirrels reign supreme.

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As mentioned in my previous post, you will find different types of the squirrels that include red squirrel, fox squirrel, gray squirrels, black squirrel, ground squirrel, and flying squirrels. Mostly all types of the squirrels have a natural appetite for different kinds of the foods. They eat flowers, veggies, plants, insects, fruits, and fungi. They just try everything to satisfy their appetite. A squirrel diet is mostly dependent on the species, season, and the reasons they live in. Many of the squirrels prefer to have fruit, seed, eggs, acorns, berries, mushrooms, and cherries. Some of the common foods of the squirrels are given below.

• Vegetables

Squirrels love vegetables. They like vegetables and leafy greens such as chard, lettuce, spinach, kale, arugula, tomatoes, beans, corn, root vegetables, peas, carrots, broccoli, celery, cauliflower, okra, corn, and cabbage. They eat vegetables and hoard them for the winter so that they will not face trouble to have foods in that time.

• Fruit

One of the favorite foods of the squirrel is fruit. If you like trees and plants, then you must have noticed that how squirrels are enjoying those delicious foods. They can climb any tree easily and hoard different fruits such as apple, pears, kiwi, grapes, mangoes, avocados, figs, plums, citrus, and much more. They also like berries such as blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and mull berries.

• Cheese

You will be surprised to know that squirrels like cheese a lot. They cannot have cheese more frequently as cheese is not accessible to them. They rely on the humans leaving such as eating outdoors, kitchen scraps. A piece of the cheese can satisfy the squirrels’ appetite and also give them extra energy to deal with those winter months.

• Insects

If they do not find fruits and vegetable they can live on the insects. Squirrels can eat small insects to satisfy their hunger and to meet the protein requirements. Some of the preferred insects of the squirrel are winged bugs, injured butterflies, larvae, caterpillars, crickets, and grasshoppers.

• Cereals

Squirrels also hoard cereals. Squirrels love those squirrels and this food also provides them enough energy to remain busy and to search more foods.

• Birdseed

Squirrels also like to have birdseed. Even if the birds are present, they will not hesitate to get in and have their foods. The reason behind such action is that birdseed contains all the squirrel favorite foods such as seeds, grains, and fruits.

• Fungi

Squirrels like fungi a lot. They can get varieties of the fungi in the forest environment depending on the climate. They eat mushrooms, truffles, corn truffles, and much more.

Do they really hoard nuts?

Yes, they hoard nuts. In fact, they are completely passionate about nuts. Nuts are one of the most preferred foods of the squirrels. They will eat the nuts and also keep them for the future. Some of their favorite nuts are almonds, cashews, walnuts, pecans, pine nuts, macadamia, acorns, hickory nuts, and hazelnuts. Nuts are one of the desired foods for all types of the squirrels.

Usually, squirrels eat all types of the food with some exceptions. But their ideal foods are nuts, fruits, vegetables, and fungi.

I’ve seen squirrels everywhere I’ve traveled, but most of that has been in the United States, and all in the Northern Hemisphere. Are they really everywhere around the world? I did a little digging and found out:

Squirrels are bushy-tailed, frisky little rodents that you are likely to encounter whenever you stroll through a park as they scurry past you or scale the trunk of a tree. So, where do squirrels live around the world? These nimble rodents live in many places around the world except in Australia and Antarctica. Currently, there are more than 200 species of squirrels living in various regions around the globe. Here are common types of squirrels and where they live:

Flying squirrel

The flying squirrel has been featured in many animal documentaries and is among the 2 types of squirrels common to North America. Encountering a flying squirrel is quite rare and most people are quite excited when they experience it.

Though they are known as flying squirrels, they do not fly, rather they glide using a flap of skin that extends from their arms to the whole length of their bodies. When outstretched, this is what enables them to glide from tree to tree in search of food or to escape from predators.

African pygmy squirrel

It is the smallest squirrel species in the world and measure about 70mm.It is found in Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. Very little is known about this tiny rodent and is now classified as vulnerable due to the loss of habitat through deforestation.

Eastern gray squirrel

This is a tree squirrel native to the Midwestern and Eastern US. They are also found in some parts of Canada. The Eastern gray squirrels are highly adaptive and have been exposed to a wide variety of environments which make it easy for them to thrive in rural and urban settings.

Since this is basically a tree squirrel, it makes its home in a trunk of a strong tree in densely wooded areas. The forests in which they make their home cover up to 100 acres of land and contain heavy vegetation that not only provide food but also help in disguising and protecting the squirrel from predators.

Indian Palm squirrel

The Indian palm squirrel also belongs to the tree species and is commonly found throughout India; however it is slightly different from its American counterpart. These squirrels were introduced to West Australia and are now viewed as a minor pest since they do not have a natural predator there.

The Indian palm squirrel also known as the 3-striped squirrel looks like a chipmunk but is slightly larger than the chipmunk. It possesses a gray coat and has 3 white stripes running from head to tail.

Indian palm squirrels are deemed to be more friendly and easier to domesticate compared to their Eastern gray cousins. Primarily, their diet consists of nuts and fruits. In India, they are considered sacred and commonly associated with the Muslim god, Lord Rama.

Alpine Marmot

The Alpine Marmot lives in the mountainous ranges of Eastern Europe at heights of between 800 to 3,200 meters. They are commonly found in the Pyrenees, Alps and Northern Apennines of Italy. These squirrels are natural diggers and can make a hole where a full grown man using a pickaxe would experience difficulty digging. They make tunnels and burrow themselves for 9 months every year in hibernation.

On a bit of an odd personal note, my brother, who lives in a semi-rural area, works from home, and doesn’t need to drive too often. Once, after a long period of not being driven, his car wouldn’t start. Turns out that squirrels had climbed into the engine of his car and had chewed up the wiring! My brother had to contact Salinas towing company to tow his car to the repair shop. Luckily, the towing company was prompt and professional, and the mechanic was able to repair the damage — although the repairs weren’t cheap. Lesson learned — cars are meant to be driven, and squirrels, while cute, are rodents — meaning they will chew anything and everything.

Now, the question of where do squirrels live around the world has been answered successfully, however keep in mind that these rodents choose habitats that suit their behavioral tendencies and fulfill their needs such as food, protection and shelter effectively.